Did you know that people pleasing is in fact not one of the fruit of the spirit?
For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. Galatians 1:10 (ESV)
I find myself both challenged and uncomfortable when I read Paul’s words in Galatians 1:10. I want to believe of myself that I am a servant of Christ and that the only approval I want or need is His, I want this to be true, and yet my thoughts and behaviour would strongly suggest that it is not.
When I consider people pleasing I don’t generally think of it as seeking the approval of man, more often than not I am attempting to avoid conflict, I just happen to do it by keeping people happy.
If I apply Paul’s Galatians 1:10 message to my behaviour I can only conclude that by investing my time and energy into pleasing people I am abandoning my role as a servant of Christ, and that frightens me significantly more than making someone else mad.
So how do I make the shift from people pleasing to being Christ’s servant?
Firstly, it’s important to recognise that a servant is identified by action and obedience. They listen to the person they are serving, in this instance Christ, and then they go about the work that has been set before them.
A diligent worker focuses on their task to the exclusion of the people around them, for example if an employee working in the deli of a local supermarket is distracted by someone asking for help with their trolley, and they step away from the deli to help the trolley person, they have stopped doing their job. If their employer were to come past they might ask why the deli person isn’t at the deli, and possibly even point out that in taking care of the customer struggling with their trolley they are preventing the person hired to take care of the trolley’s from doing their job, as well as leaving the people visiting the deli unassisted.
Part of serving Christ means staying on task, and it means saying no to the things that aren’t for me. This can look like placing boundaries and enforcing those boundaries when they have been crossed.
Serving Christ means letting him tell you who you are. If He has said that you are His deli person, and you are focused on serving Him, it doesn’t matter how much somebody insists you are a trolley person you will keep working as a deli person.
The only way to know who God says you are, and if you are on task is to stay connected with Him, that means getting into the word, praying, and listening for His direction.
Have you considered if you are people pleasing or serving God? Because it seems to me that you have to choose one or the other, and I know which one I want to do.
Karla